Nickerson Beach Campground

TL;DR - Skip to last 3 paragraphs for summary/opinion section

I booked my site online as I believe is the only way to do so. The online system was not very informational and the camp site map didn’t really give any insight into any differences between sites for choosing one. So I chose the first site on the list, site #2. I’m guessing this is fairly common for a guest to book the first site on the list. This is important later.

I drove down from Connecticut to Long Island to find the main routes to the campsite all went through New York’s parkways. There are height restrictions on the parkways so RVs and semis cannot travel on them without a high risk of crashing into the bridges and getting the tops ripped off like a tin can. Google Maps doesn’t have an option for large vehicles so I made my way manually and the trip took an extra hour or more to arrive than planned. Not anyone’s fault - just divulging for awareness.

Arrived at the site, was greeted by a man who said he didn’t have anyone on the list arriving that day and if I could show him the email confirmation. I did, he confirmed, showed me to my spot - site #2 - right by the entrance. He gave me rundown on campsite rules - quiet hours, gates closing hours, where to park if arriving afterwards, etc then he helped me back my 5th wheel into the spot. Very nice.

I booked the site for 1 week initially until 11/2 - over the Halloween weekend during a nor’eastor. So much of the first week was rainy and windy. The campsite is flat and open, no trees, no nothing really. 2/6 days we had part sun. It was the last week the site was open for the season and there was only about 15 sites occupied. Not sure how many sites are there but it seemed like 100+. A day ahead of my departure date - Nov 1 - I decided to just go ahead and extend my stay until the end of the campsite season, Nov 6. I again went to book online to extend. The site was giving a message saying “partial availability” and it looked as if the site I had had been booked for Nov 3 for one night. It was late at night so I planned on talking to the office the next day Nov 2 to see if I had any options to try and stay on site #2.

Nov 2 - One of the site managers, Bill, knocked on my camper and said someone was coming tomorrow and that I was supposed to move over one site to site #3. I posited the chance that maybe we could contact the new reservation and see if they specifically wanted that site or if they just chose it first on the list and wouldn’t mind having another site, as the park was 90% empty. Bill understood and told me he had no control over that but I should talk to the office manager Michelle. Nov 2 was election day and the office was closed so I planned on speaking with Michelle the next morning Nov 3 before the new reservation arrived, as check-in time is 1pm.

Nov 3 - 930am another camp manager knocks on my camper to tell me to move - I inform him I was going to ask the office to potentially stay, and he said he had no power over the move/stay issue but that Michelle was in the office.

I went to the office and was greeted by a woman at the reception desk - I asked to speak to Michelle - she asked what it was regarding - I said I was and RV camper at site #2 and would like to ask a question. Michelle came to the desk and immediately had a defensive posture. I didn’t have high hopes for this conversation. I said “Good morning! My name is Matt - I’ve been staying on site #2 for a week now and I believe you had a one-day reservation for my spot and I was wondering…-“ Michelle then cut me off and said “You have to move.” I said that I understood the reservation policy but if it wouldn’t be too much to ask to maybe reach out to the new campers on my behalf to ask if maybe they wouldn’t mind another site as all the sites are the same and they likely just booked the generic website by choosing the first site on the list…she cut me off again and said “You have to move.” I asked if she was interested at all in hearing me finish my question or didn’t care. She said “You have to move.”

I told her that her not even hearing me out was poor customer service and that I would write a review telling others of my bad experience. She said “That’s okay cause you’ll be blocked from coming back!” WOW. Interesting customer service response to block a guest that just paid over a grand to stay at a basic site who only wanted you to TRY and find out if the new campers booked that site specifically.
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That was my explanation of the circumstances, here is my opinion:

The campground is fine but nothing special. There’s industrial stuff going on right near the site I chose and along the whole east fenceline and there is no close entrance to any beach area. The closest fence line to the campground has no beach access and has a huge sign that says STAY OUT - TICKS! Its a good 10 minute walk to the beach through a concrete parking lot and basketball courts. I believe it was around $100/night to stay here. It’s hard to get to with an RV due to the parkways. The online reservation system is clunky and shows no photos or have much detail. The on-site staff has no authority to do anything other than enforce the rules set by the office. Michelle the office manager was curt and uninterested in anything I had to say at all. Then got very defensive and rude. It took me 35-40 minutes to unhook sewer, power, water, attach the fifth wheel to my truck, put the slide-outs in unlevel everything, re-park the the trailer 20 feet away, unhook the trailer, re-level it, hook up up sewer, water, power, & extend the slides - all because Michelle didn’t want to make a call or send an email to say “hey! we had a camper in site #2 extend his stay and was wondering if you wouldn’t mind site #3?” - I believe they would have 100% said yes and 100% believe they booked the site based on it being the first site open on the booking system just like I did. If they said no - I would have been fine with moving per policy - if the campsite had any differences whatsoever between sites (shade, trees, lake nearby, etc) I would have been fine with it - not even a “I’m sorry sir, but we have a policy to…and we are committed to abide by it. Sorry for the inconvenience..” - Michelle did not even care to allow me to finish asking my question before she rudely sent me away and threatened to block me from staying here ever again.

UPDATE - No one ever showed up and parked in that site.

I guess as a business owner who was also in customer service industries for over 20 years my philosophy is that if you can do something small or easy to try and help out a customer and make them happy then you should do so. Maybe I’m naive. I approached everyone I spoke with calmly and openly and the response was uncalled for at the least.

Michelle - Thanks for being a dismissive inhuman devoid of any empathy to remind me that there are people like you out there. Another example of enforcing blanket policies that aren’t really applicable to the current situation to excuse yourself from any responsibility for being a nice person.

Advice to future campers - stay here if you like - it’s close enough to the beach, train, food, Long Island things to do, etc - a little pricy, but expected in the area - but I hope that you do not need any reason to interact with office staff.

The campground has spacious sites and clean facilities. The beach is a 10 minute walk with Lots of space and white sand. Nice restaurants, boardwalk, shopping are only 1-3 miles away.

We were here in early October 2020 but I can imagine how crowded this area gets during main season. Driving through New York with an RV wasn‘t much fun so next time I‘ll stay some place west of New York

We were so happy to arrive at Nickerson Beach Campground. The vibes of Long Island Summer were all around us. Kids out of school for summer running around from the pool to the beach to the playground. Sounds of live music being carried over by the ocean breezes from the neighboring "Maliblue" beach club. As soon as we arrived, we knew we would like to return.

This campground was filled with a lot of Long Island locals who were very friendly and there to enjoy their summer at the beach. Reservations should be booked FAR in advance. See the county website for details.

The sites were spacious and easy to get into. Hooking up was smooth. Cell phone service on Verizon was excellent. Thank goodness, because the campground did not have wi-fi, so we had to use our data plans for internet, which was an inconvenience considering we were working and living there for a month.

It took just about 7 minutes for us to walk to the beach. And its about a 10 minute drive to get into the town of Long Beach where there are many enjoyable bars and restaurants.

At one point we had an issue with our sewer connection. It took a few days and a few visits to the office to get someone there. It wasn't an emergency, but it was annoying to have to keep asking for assistance. Another thing that I couldn't ignore was the amount of trash that was left behind to blow around in the wind. On the beach, on the campground, and around all the amenity areas. This could certainly be resolved if visitors were more mindful of their waste, but also I think it would help to have staff coming around more frequently to pickup what is left behind. That would be my biggest recommendation.

Visitors should keep in mind that they also share the park amenities with those who rent "beach cabanas" at Nickerson. And if you prefer quiet, this may not be the place for you. There are a lot of activities going on at the park and generally, campers are there to have a good time with friends and family who come to visit.

We enjoyed the summer sounds around us so like I said, we'll be back!